Machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle



June 24, 1969 w. A. SHIELDS 3,451,116

MACHINE FOR CRIMPING A FERRULE TO A HYPODERMIC NEEDLE Filed Sept. 27,1966 Sheet of 2 INVENTOR WALTER A.SHIELDS ATTORNEY June 24, 1969 w. A.SHIELDS 3,451,116

MACHINE FOR CRIMPING A FERRULE TO A HYPODERMIC NEEDLE Filed Sept. 27,.1966 Sheet 2; 012

Flea.

INVENTOR WALTER A. SHIELDS 33' BY v ATTORNEY United States Patent3,451,116 MACHINE FOR CRIMPING A FERRULE TO A HYPODERMIC NEEDLE WalterA. Shields, Jamaica, N.Y. (38-09 24th St., Long Island City, N.Y. 11101)Filed Sept. 27, 1966, Ser. No. 582,409 Int. Cl. B23p 19/04 U.S. Cl.29-200 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE After the ferrule is crimpedto the hypodermic needle, it is provided with a protective shield andassembled in a cap member for use in a syringe.

It is an object of the invention to provide jaws which will evenly crimpa ferrule to a hypodermic needle under great pressure by a toggleaction.

It is another object of the invention to maintain the jaws and mandrelunder spring tension during the crimping of the ferrule to thehypodermic needle.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in thedetailed description of the invention.

In the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this application:

FIGURE 1 is an elevational view of the embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view, on an enlarged scale, of the headlooking from the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1 in the direction of the arrows:

FIGURE 3 is a longitudinal sectional view, on an enlarged scale, of thehead and mandrel, taken on the line 33 of FIGURE 1, looking in thedirection of the arrows and showing the jaws spaced from each other andthe mandrel spaced below said jaws;

FIGURE 4 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 with part of the head broken-awayand showing the mandrel actuating the jaws into crimping position; and

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a jaw.

The embodiment of the invention comprises a head including an annularplate 6 having a radial series of spaced pairs of ears 7 secured andprojected from the bottom of said plate and each pair of ears is formedfrom a U-member secured at the connecting portion to the bottom of theplate as by welding. Each pair of ears is adapted to swingingly supporta jaw 8 by a pin 9 fixed at its ends in the ears and loosely engaged inthe outer or perimetrical end of said jaw, as shown in FIGURES 3 and 4.The opposite or inner end of each jaw is provided with a nose 10tapering from converging edges 11 and the lower converging edge isarranged with a projection 12 for a purpose to be hereinafter described.Due to the location of the pins 9 in the jaws 8, the noses 10 will swingin a downward direction from the head plate 6 and said downward swingingmovement is limited by abutments in the form of a pin 13 fixed in andextended transversely of each pair of cars 7 to engage a notch 14 in thelower edge of each jaw 8 between the pin 9 and the nose 10. In thepresent illustration of the invention there are eight radially disposedjaws.

The head plate 6 is provided with a tubular member 15 secured by screws16 to the top of said plate concentrically of the opening in the plate,and said opening and tubular member 15 being lined with bearing material17. The upper end of the tubular member 15 is closed by an elongated capmember 18 secured to the tubular member and having an interior borecorresponding to the inner bore of the bearing liners 17. The head plate6 is mounted in a fixed position by a standard 19 having a lateralextension 20 secured to the head plate 6, as shown in FIGURE 2.

The jaws 8 are yieldingly urged against the pins 13 by a plunger 21slidable in the bearing liners 17 and having at its lower end a taperedhead 22 corresponding to the angle of the upper converging edges 11 ofthe jaws 8 to forcibly engage said edges 11 by a spring 23 compressedbetween the closed end of the cap member 18 and the upper end of theplunger 21 which is provided with a spring guiding knob 24, as shown inFIGURE 3. The tapered head 22 is arranged with an inwardly extendingbore 25 having a flaring entrance 26, as shown in FIGURES 3 and 4, for apurpose to be hereinafter described. The pins 13 are positioned in theears 7 so that the plunger 21 will space the jaw noses 10 apredetermined distance from each other and form a circular space, asshown in FIGURE 3.

A ferrule f and a hypodermic needle n are moved into said circular spaceformed by the jaw noses 10 by a mandrel in the form of a rod 27 slidablymounted in a bearing 28 of an annular series of equidistantly spacedbearings in a rotatable table 29. The upper end of the mandrel 27 isreduced to support the ferrule 7 having the hypodermic needle n looselyengaged therein. Below the reduced end of the mandrel 27, there issecured an abutment in the form of a ring 30 which normally abuts thetop of the bearing 28 under the influence of a spring 31 compressed onthe mandrel 27 between the bottom of the table 29 and a collar 32secured on the lower end of the mandrel 27.

In operation, the loosely assembled ferrules and hypodermic needles arepositioned on the reduced end portions of the mandrels 27, and the table29 is intermittently rotated by a suitable mechanism, not shown,operatively connected to a shaft 33 of the table 29. The intermittentrotation of the table 29 successively positions a mandrel 27 with itsloosely assembled ferrule and hypodermic needle in vertical alignmentand spaced below the circular space formed by the jaw noses 10. A rod33' is slidably mounted in a bearing 34 on a platform 35 below the table29 with the upper end of the rod 33 normally positioned slightly belowthe path of travel of the lower ends of the mandrels 27, as shown inFIGURE 1. The lower end of the rod 33 is arranged with an adjustablecoupling member 36 pivotally connected to a lever 37 adjacent one end ofsaid lever and the opposite end of said lever is pivotally mounted, asshown at 38 in FIGURE 1. A roller 39 is rotatably mounted on a portionof the lever 37 intermediate the ends of said lever and is yieldinglyurged by a spring 40 to ride on a cam disc 41 continuously rotated bysuitable mechanism, not shown. The spring 40 is connected at one end tothe end of the lever 37 adjacent to the pivotal connection of thecoupling member 36. The opposite end of the spring 40 is anchored tosuitable anchorage, not shown. The low portion of the cam disc 41 underthe infiuence of the spring 40 will position the upper end of the rod33' slightly below the line of travel of the lower ends of the mandrels27, as shown in FIGURE 3. The high portion of the cam disc 41 willcontact the roller 39 during the rest periods of the table 29 and raisethe aligned mandrel against the force of the associated spring 31 andforcibly engage the abutment ring 30 with the jaw projections 12 toimpart a toggle action to the jaws 8 causing the jaw noses 10 to advanceforwardly with great pressure and squeezed or crimp the ferrule f to thehypodermic needle n which have been positioned in the circular spaceformed by the jaw noses 10 just prior to the contact of the ringabutment 30 with the jaw projections 12, as shown in FIGURE 4. The borein the tapered head 22 of the plunger 21 will permit upward movement ofthe mandrel 27 without damaging the hypodermic needle 11, as shown inFIGURE 4.

After the ferrule is crimped to the hypodermic needle, a protectiveshield is positioned over the fully assembled ferrule and hypodermicneedle at a succeeding station of the mandrel 27 by a succeedingintermittent rotation of the table 29.

It is to be understood that the mandrels 27 could be fixedly mounted onthe table 29 and the head plate 6 could be reciproacted toward and awayfrom an aligned mandrel 27 and its ferrule f and hypodermic needle nwithout departing from the scope of the present invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle comprising ahead, jaws radially disposed in the head and pivotally mounted at theirperimetrical ends with the opposite ends swinging in a downwarddirection from each other, abutments in the head to limit the downwardlyswinging movement of the opposite ends of the jaws and space saidopposite ends a predetermined distance apart, and a mandrel adapted tobe positioned in vertical alignment and spaced 'below the space betweenthe opposite ends of the jaws, said mandrel adapted to support a ferrulehaving a hypodermic needle loosely engaged therein said mandrel adaptedto impart movement of the hypodermic needle into the space between theopposite ends of the jaws thereby moving the jaws from the abutments inthe head and causing said opposite ends of the jaws to crimp the ferruleto the hypodermic needle.

2. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 1, wherein the head is fixedly mounted.

3. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 1, wherein each jaw is provided with a notch in the lower edgethereof and intermediate the ends of each jaw, and each abutment in thehead comprises a pin extended transversely of and in the notch of thejaw.

4. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 1, wherein the opposite end of each jaw is provided with a nosetapering from converging edges of said jaw.

5. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 1, a plunger slidably mounted in the head and yieldingly urgedinto engagement with said opposite ends of the jaws to normally maintainthe jaws in engagement with the abutments in the head.

6. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 4, a plunger having a tapered head corresponding to the angleof the upper converging edges of the jaws and slidably mounted in thehead and yieldingly urged to engage said tapered head with the upperconverging edges of the jaws and normally maintain the jaws inengagement with the abutments in the head and space the noses of thejaws from each other.

7. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 6, wherein the tapered head of the plunger is provided with avertical bore to receive the hypodermic needle during the crimping ofthe ferrule to the hypoderimc needle.

8. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 1, wherein the mandrel is slidably mounted and yieldingly urgedfrom the head to position the hypodermic needle and ferrule in spacedrelation to the opposite ends of the jaws, and means to intermittentlyactuate the mandrel toward the head.

9. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 8, an abutment mounted on the mandrel below the ferrule andhypodermic needle to limit the movement of the mandrel from the head, toengage the opposite ends of the jaws, to move the jaws from the abumentsin the head and to cause the crimping of the ferrule to the hypodermicneedle by the opposite ends of the jaws.

10. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 9, wherein the lower converging edge of each jaw is providedwith a projection to be engaged by the abutment on the mandrel.

11. The machine for crimping a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimedin claim 1, a table rotatably mounted on a vertical axis extending in aplane parallel to the vertical axis of the head and slidably carrying aplurality of said mandrels to successively position the mandrels invertical alignment and spaced below the space between the opposite endsof the jaws.

12. The machine to crimp a ferrule to a hypodermic needle as claimed inclaim 8, wherein the means to intermittently actuate the mandrelcomprises a rod slidably mounted in vertical alignment and spaced belowthe space between the opposite ends of the jaws, a continuously rotatingcam disc, and a lever connected to the rod and having a roller riding onthe cam disc.

5/1958 Perri. 5/1961 Macleod.

THOMAS H. EAGER, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 29-208

